Coca Spraying Poses No Risk To Colombians, U.S. Declares

By CHRISTOPHER MARQUIS

Published: September 6, 2002

WASHINGTON, Sept. 5—
The American-financed aerial destruction of coca crops in Colombia meets United States regulatory standards and does not endanger people or the environment, the State Department said today in a report to Congress.

The department's antinarcotics bureau, which oversees the program, concluded that the herbicides used and the manner in which they are applied ''do not pose unreasonable risks or adverse effects to humans or the environment.''

That determination, which was immediately deplored by some environmental groups, could free money from Congress for an aggressive advance in the effort to eradicate coca at its source. The department has set a goal of killing up to 300,000 acres of coca this year, 30 percent more than last year.

The month-old government of President Álvaro Uribe has given American officials wide latitude in carrying out the spraying, which will involve 18 crop-dusting planes by year's end. But the program, which began in 1994, has been trailed by controversy, both because of the unknown health effects in Colombia and by its failure to curb the overall amount of coca being grown.

Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat and chairman of the appropriations subcommittee that finances the operation, said he would need to study the report before releasing about $17 million needed to buy the herbicide mixture.

Mr. Leahy froze that money in legislation approved earlier this year. The law requires that the State Department certify that the eradication program meets the regulatory controls required in the United States and does not threaten the public's health or the environment.

''There are reports of health problems and food crops destroyed from the fumigation,'' Mr. Leahy said. ''Spraying a toxic chemical over large areas, including where people live and livestock graze, would not be tolerated in our country. We should not be spraying first and asking questions later.''

In preparing its report, the State Department was required to consult with the Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency. While Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman reported that the health risk was ''minimal,'' the E.P.A. was less categorical, and State Department officials refused to say whether they considered the agency's position as positive.

In a review forwarded by Stephen L. Johnson, the assistant administrator, the agency said the main ingredient in the herbicide used in Colombia, glyphosate, known by the trade name Roundup, is widely used in the United States with ''no unreasonable adverse effects.''

But the E.P.A. noted that an additive in glyphostae could cause acute eye irritation. In the United States, the agency said, the herbicide is typically sprayed from low-flying helicopters, not planes, and steps should be taken to avoid having it drift away from the target areas.